{"id":604,"date":"2014-07-17T13:29:21","date_gmt":"2014-07-17T17:29:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/?p=604"},"modified":"2014-07-17T14:41:44","modified_gmt":"2014-07-17T18:41:44","slug":"get-know-justin-theroux","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/2014\/07\/17\/get-know-justin-theroux\/","title":{"rendered":"Get to Know: Justin Theroux"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Long before he was keeping the streets of Mapleton, NY safe and sound (or soundless, in the case of the Guilty Remnant) on HBO\u2019s <em>The Leftovers<\/em>, Justin Theroux has been making a name for himself in Hollywood both on and off screen.<\/p>\n<p>First, let\u2019s talk about stage credits: he appeared in the Roundabout Theatre\u2019s 1997 production of Chekov\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/archive.roundabouttheatre.org\/index.php\/Detail\/Occurrence\/Show\/occurrence_id\/192\"><em>Three Sisters<\/em><\/a> alongside such heavy hitters as Paul Giamatti, David Strathairn, Lili Taylor, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Billy Crudup, and Amy Irving.<\/p>\n<p>That same year he appeared in <em>Romy and Michele\u2019s High School Reunion<\/em>, in the role of \u201cCowboy\u201d:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"395\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/iwhewPszSbg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/justin-theroux-sex-city.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-610\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/justin-theroux-sex-city.jpg\" alt=\"justin-theroux-sex-city\" width=\"216\" height=\"162\" \/><\/a>In 1999 Theroux was added as another notch on Carrie Bradshaw\u2019s bedpost on <em>Sex &amp; the City<\/em>. In the episode \u201cShortcomings\u201d he played Vaughn, one of those deep-thinking author types from a quirky family that seems straight out of a Wes Anderson movie. The episode\u2019s title refers to how he was a Quick Draw McGraw in the sack, thus making the love story of Carrie and Vaughn a short one.<\/p>\n<p>The year 2000 saw Theroux in one of my favorite movies and featured in one of its greatest scenes. In <em>American Psycho<\/em> he played Timothy Bryce, one of Patrick Bateman\u2019s fellow VPs at Pierce and Pierce. The one who Bateman can&#8217;t believe prefers Van Patten&#8217;s card to Bateman\u2019s own.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"395\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EUTV-cRtDdk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>2001 was a busy year for Theroux, appearing in both <em>Zoolander<\/em> and David Lynch\u2019s <em>Mulholland Drive<\/em>, as well as landing the role of Nick Pierce on the CBS drama <em>The District<\/em>. It\u2019s funny, I watched that entire series, which ran four seasons, but had zero recollection about the Craig T. Nelson-fronted drama until I started compiling this list. I\u2019m sorry to say I still I can\u2019t recall Justin Theroux from this show, but I do remember that it co-starred Lynne Thigpen, who passed away during the series\u2019 run.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/Mulholland.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-609\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/Mulholland-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"Mulholland\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/Mulholland-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/Mulholland.jpg 518w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>I DO remember him, quite fondly actually, from <em>Mulholland Drive<\/em>. It was the centerpiece film at the 2001 New York Film Festival, and the page in the <em>Playbill<\/em> (which I edited) used this picture of him as the featured image for the film, which is a really interesting promotional choice when you think about how ridiculously attractive Naomi Watts and Laura Elena Harring were in that movie. Theroux played Adam Kesher, a director whose hand is forced, by both mobsters and a mysterious cowboy, to make artistic decisions contrary to his own when casting his film.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"395\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/R_VEQI2nS48?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/6FU.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-608\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/6FU.jpg\" alt=\"6FU\" width=\"216\" height=\"149\" \/><\/a>Theroux later turned up in the 2003\u201304 season of <em>Six Feet Under<\/em>, playing Brenda\u2019s (Rachel Griffiths) neighbor-turned-boyfriend, who helps her to deal with her sexual hang-ups\u2026that is until she hooks up again with Nate Fisher, and then it\u2019s bye-bye Joe. Too bad, since he played a mean French Horn.<\/p>\n<p>Also in 2003, Theroux starred in the music video for Muse\u2019s song \u201cHysteria.\u201d It doesn\u2019t get much cooler than this.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"527\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/k7la0SndoCI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In 2007\u2019s comedy <em>The Ten<\/em>, David Wain\u2019s send-up on The Ten Commandments, Theroux plays Jesus. Yes, THAT Jesus. In a terrible wig. And Jesus falls in love with a librarian (played by Gretchen Mol). It\u2019s all part of the vignette \u201cThou Shall Not Take the Lord\u2019s Name in Vain,\u201d which you can watch here.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"527\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HfexcBK3D2Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Theroux then donned another bad rug for the 2008 HBO miniseries <em>John Adams<\/em>, in which he played John Hancock alongside his old stage buddy Paul Giamatti. We all know what John Hancock did, right? So I don\u2019t really need to get into the plot for this one.<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"395\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/5JTxVHQAp8w?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>2008 also saw the release of <em>Tropic Thunder<\/em>, for which Theroux wrote the screenplay. He also appeared in the <em>Tropic Thunder<\/em> mockumentary trailer, <em>Rain of Madness<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"395\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/j-zAzeztQi4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/2010_iron_man_2_076.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-607\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/2010_iron_man_2_076.jpg\" alt=\"2010_iron_man_2_076\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/parks_rec.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-606\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/parks_rec.jpg\" alt=\"parks_rec\" width=\"300\" height=\"202\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Jumping ahead to 2010, Theroux wrote the screenplay to <em>Iron Man 2<\/em>, pairing him up again with <em>Tropic Thunder<\/em>\u2019s Robert Downey, Jr. This was a missed opportunity for yet another movie villain to put Gwyneth Paltrow\u2019s head in a box, but I digress.<\/p>\n<p>He also had a four-episode stint on NBC\u2019s <em>Parks and Recreation<\/em>, playing Justin Anderson\u2014friend of Ann (Ann Perkins!), and brief boyfriend of Leslie. Ironically, in the \u201cGalentine\u2019s Day\u201d episode, Leslie waxes poetic about reuniting such lovers as Romeo and Juliet, or Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt, and then addresses the camera\/Jennifer Aniston to \u201cstay away from John Mayer\u201d (who Aniston was reportedly dating at the time).<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of Aniston, we move ahead\u00a0to 2012, the year Theroux co-starred with his future fianc\u00e9e in the movie <em>Wanderlust<\/em>, which was also written and directed by David Wain (<em>The Ten<\/em>). He plays Seth, a member of a hippie commune who falls in love with Linda (Aniston), much to the disappointment of Linda\u2019s husband George (Paul Rudd).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"702\" height=\"395\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9YzMqUZmyaw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/rock-of-ages-movie.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-611\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/rock-of-ages-movie.jpg\" alt=\"rock-of-ages-movie\" width=\"300\" height=\"261\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/rock-of-ages-movie.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2014\/07\/rock-of-ages-movie-110x96.jpg 110w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Theroux donned his writing cap again in 2012, helping to pen the film adaptation of the Broadway musical <em>Rock of Ages<\/em>, starring Tom Cruise and featuring <em>Wanderlust<\/em> co-star, Malin Akerman. We&#8217;ll kindly leave it at that.<\/p>\n<p>Which brings us to present-day Theroux, now starring on the HBO series <em>The Leftovers<\/em>. And you know how much we&#8217;re loving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/2014\/07\/14\/the-leftovers-recap-episode-3-doin-the-pigeon\/\">that show<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Long before he was keeping the streets of Mapleton, NY safe and sound (or soundless, in the case of the Guilty Remnant) on HBO\u2019s The Leftovers, Justin Theroux has been making a name for himself in Hollywood both on and off screen. First, let\u2019s talk about stage credits: he appeared in the Roundabout Theatre\u2019s 1997<\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/2014\/07\/17\/get-know-justin-theroux\/\" title=\"Read More\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":157,"featured_media":605,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[107],"tags":[310,311,309,297,305,179,306,308,307,301,312,304,315,313,314,299,302,177,298,51,300,303],"class_list":{"0":"post-604","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-celebrities","8":"tag-american-psycho","9":"tag-bryce","10":"tag-hysteria","11":"tag-iron-man-2","12":"tag-john-adams","13":"tag-justin-theroux","14":"tag-mulholland-drive","15":"tag-muse","16":"tag-ny-film-festival","17":"tag-parks-and-recreation","18":"tag-paul-allen","19":"tag-rock-of-ages","20":"tag-romy-and-micheles-high-school-reunion","21":"tag-sex-the-city","22":"tag-shortcomings","23":"tag-six-feet-under","24":"tag-the-district","25":"tag-the-leftovers","26":"tag-the-ten","27":"tag-tropic-thunder","28":"tag-wanderlust","29":"tag-zoolander"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/157"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=604"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}